William Geary, who died on Sunday aged 105, was a tenacious and disciplined man with a passion for justice. For seven decades, the former Garda superintendent fought his wrongful dismissal from the force and in 1999 he was cleared of bribery charges.
Geary was born in Ballyagran, Charleville, Co Limerick, to Patrick and Helen (nee Walsh) Geary in 1899. After national school, he worked on the family farm until 1920 when he began work as a wireless operator with the Marconi Company.
The Limerick man travelled on the tramp steamer City of Birmingham around the world stopping in east and South Africa, the US, India and the Middle East. Following his service, he returned to the family farm and drilled volunteers for the Civil War.
On the suggestion of a neighbour, Geary joined the newly formed Garda Síochána in May 1922. He was quickly promoted through the ranks to Garda superintendent, 2nd grade, serving in the Cavan/Monaghan division, Garda Headquarters, Newport, and Templemore, Tipperary.
His most difficult assignment came in February 1926 when he was transferred to Kilrush, Co Clare, a flash point in the bitter war between Republicans and the Garda. Members of the force were regularly ambushed and their families intimidated.
For 2½ years, the station slowly gained the trust of residents who soon began handing in small caches of arms, Geary would later recount.
Then, in the summer of 1928, he was called before the Garda Commissioner accused of accepting a £100 bribe from the IRA for information. Despite his total denial, he was dismissed by the executive council of the Irish Free State on June 25th, 1928, without a hearing or trial.
In November 1928, Geary emigrated to the US vowing to clear his family name. He had no difficulty obtaining work in New York City despite the looming stock market crash and was employed by electricity company, Con Edison, in a succession of jobs from 1929 to 1967. While working, he attended night school and attained his high school diploma.
He never forgot the stain on his reputation and in 1934 he began a letter writing campaign to the Irish Government asking it to reopen his case. The requests were denied for lack of new evidence and he was denied access to the evidence against him.
In 1936, he welcomed the chance to become an American citizen and was a life-long supporter of the Republican Party. He never forgot his heritage though and was an enthusiastic member of the Limerick Men's Benevolent and Social Association from 1932, serving as president from 1936-37, and in 1940. During the second World War he served as a sergeant in the US Air Force.
He married Margaret Shryane, a native of Roosky, Co Roscommon, in February 1943 in New York. They moved into an apartment near the United Nations where they later reared their two daughters Helen (Geary) Markett and Anne (Geary) Wallace. Margaret Geary died in 1985. The Gearys had four granddaughters.
In September 1998, the Geary family applied for the former superintendent's records under the newly passed Freedom of Information Act. The request was denied but some files were released by "on humanitarian grounds".
Geary's request for a review of the case received cross-party support in the Dáil and the matter was brought before the Cabinet in April 1999. The then Minister for Justice, John O'Donoghue, cleared his name on April 22nd in a statement saying that natural justice had not been followed and that Geary was entitled to his good name and reputation. Geary was granted full pension rights and a cash sum. O'Donoghue later arranged a private meeting with him in New York.
Throughout his life, he was an avid student of history, classical music, Gilbert and Sullivan operas and fishing. A line from Shakespeare's Hamlet gave him great comfort during his letter-writing campaign: "There's a divinity that shapes our ends, rough-hew them how we will."
A devout Catholic, he attended Mass daily and in 2000 was made a Knight of the Holy Sepulchre for 60 years of service to his church, St John the Evangelist, in Manhattan.
In the tradition of his generation, he was a dapper man with a fondness for bow-ties, white shirts, tweed caps and walking canes. He was an easily recognisable and well-liked character on Manhattan's upper East side where he took daily exercise, even after his 100th birthday.
William Geary: born February 28th 1899; died October 17th, 2004.